News from EPI › Anti-worker bill defeated in New Hampshire

It is encouraging to see that the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted down an attempt to make New Hampshire a freeloader state. Republican leadership tried to push through a so-called right-to-work bill that would have given the benefits of union contracts to employees who refused to pay their fair share of the union’s costs. Legislation barring unions from requiring the workers they represent to pay dues is a recipe for weaker bargaining power and declining wages, for union and nonunion workers alike. Workers in so-called right-to-work states earn at least $6,000 less than other workers on average, and EPI research shows that even after controlling for other differences between states like the cost of living, they earn 3.2 percent less―or $1,558 less per worker. It’s heartening that a majority of representatives saw through the governor’s phony claims.

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EPI is an independent, nonprofit think tank that researches the impact of economic trends and policies on working people in the United States. EPI’s research helps policymakers, opinion leaders, advocates, journalists, and the public understand the bread-and-butter issues affecting ordinary Americans.